[HALIFAX, NS] — The owner of the beloved Chickenburger restaurants says the Queen Street location will be demolished to make way for the kind of building he says the bustling district deserves.

“That part of town deserves some investment — I think it’s the heart of downtown,” Mickey MacDonald said Sunday. “That corner has been the corner for the last 100 years or so, so I’m sure it’ll be the real corner of downtown for the next 100.”

MacDonald said he’s in talks with developers to plan the new project on his land between Spring Garden Road, Queen and Birmingham streets.

He has no plans to seek any amendments to municipal planning documents, which should ensure a quick approval process. An as-of-right development could be eight or nine storeys and MacDonald said he’s leaning towards a mixed-use building.

“You go to Toronto and you see some of these really nice places with retail on the ground floor and apartments above that, so I’m envisioning something like that,” he said.

MacDonald said he’s hoping construction can begin in the spring.

“We’re going to take advantage of the new ship contract and the offshore investment and everything else,” he said. “Downtown Halifax is starting to come alive and we want to be part of that.”

The Chickenburger, which employs about 25 people, will close Dec. 1.

“It’s the end of the season…I figured it would be a good time to do it now,” he said.

A statement from MacDonald’s company says employees at the Queen Street Chickenburger will be offered positions at one of the other locations in HRM.

MacDonald said he’s hoping the eatery will re-open in the new building.